The corridor leading to the sealed room was colder than the rest of the manor, as if Lucian's magic had seeped into every stone, every shadow.
Lucian and Auren stood before the reinforced door, Sebastian's seal still glowing faintly at its edges. On the other side, Elyndra lingered inside Seraphina's body, a threat neither of them could afford to mishandle.
Auren reached for the door first, fingers brushing the silver knob but Lucian's hand shot out, stopping him by the arm.
Auren turned slightly, eyebrows lifting in question.
Lucian's expression wasn't cold this time. It wasn't furious. It was something far more fragile, so tightly restrained it almost didn't look like him.
"I really hope you can pull her out…" he said, voice low and rough, the words scraping against the ache in his chest. "I really hope… you bring her back to me."
His hand tightened unconsciously on Auren's arm, not with anger or warning, but with something close to desperation.
